THOMAS JOSEPH

Giant favorite Buster Posey has maneuvered the team into the worst of all positions. The team has a $200m+ payroll with nearly $500m in long-term commitments. Ugh. It is tepid, top heavy, and most importantly, uncompetitive. Compare to the lithe, young, and aggressive Marlins. Maybe Giants fans can be placated by a few splash homers at Oracle. Of course, Giants ownership could give Posey another $100m to flush because he was a great player. Such odd thinking.

Marlins sweep, with Owen Caissie going wild by the Bay.

Fingers crossed he's anywhere near the Iglesias or Giménez.

Don't throttle the aggressiveness. Ruiz will add another component to things, as well.

Ruiz leading off or 9th?

Bendix is already itching for a shakeup. My wager is before the end of May.

The never-ending quirks of baseball.

Don't give Mouth-Breather Walker anything. If the rest of the order beats you, so be it. Don't discourage the aggressive base running. The Marlins need that extra component.

Marlins sweep. Turnaround in progress. Since we're talking about him, Caissie to shine this series.

Let Caissie get his sea legs. Like Caissie, Stowers concerned me because he was missing pitches in the zone. Dare we expect such a dramatic turnaround from Caissie? Yes, I think so.

Norbs will shine.

I'm controlling myself vis-à-vis Alcántara's removal. Putting together some thoughts on the ABS system. MLB wants us to collectively gulp and exhale air as the challenge is announced and the result displayed. I assume there are continuously updated statistics on the process - number of challenges, overturned percentage, use by innings, etc.

Robotic.

Let's get into our rant! Stanton is off to a great start! Isn't Stanton one of the premier examples of horrendous long-term mega deals? Two hundred million dollars over the last seven years, with three more to go, and a hunk of the final years will be paid by the Marlins. Even the much-ballyhooed pairing with Judge, which, if successful, arguably could have mitigated the huge sunk costs, has failed (so far) to pan out. If the Yankees don't win a title with these two, isn't New York the true measure of top-heavy payroll failure, replacing the much-disparaged Angels? Perhaps the postseason appearances and lots of regular-season wins are salve on the wound for fans and ownership in Yankee Nation? No, of course not. What I continue to find fascinating is the idea that, somehow, past production has "earned" the horrendous failed contracts. I harken back to someone like Johnny Bench. His final $1 million contract was most certainly a reward and not a production bounty. Of course, Bench did actually win titles during his tenure and was never a roster millstone. I am interested in how someone with hundreds of millions in payments, with seven, and soon to be, eight or nine years (!) of middling production, has redeeming value. Perhaps misplaced nostalgia is worth $200 million. No, of course not. The same mindset applies to another ex-Marlin hero, Miguel Cabrera. Despite the smiles and nice gifts at his return, his atrocious extension handicapped the Tigers for the better part of a decade. The Tigers rue that decision, and you can forget that the Tiger cap in the HOF makes everything ok. They'd trade it for the $200 million in a freaking heartbeat if such a thing were possible. Of course, his retirement "tour" was a nice feel-good event. Even more so for the Tigers organization, which breathed a sigh of relief that the furious cash-flushing was finally, finally over, the roster spot was free, and the team could move on. See how it has recovered as the millstone is removed. As the same relief will be felt in New York after Stanton is gone, along with the many other incredibly foolish deals festering or looming right now. Yes, Rendon and Strasburg are gone. But does anyone want to make a list without even thinking hard? Trout, Bogaerts, Bryant, Baez. How long before the Devers contract in San Francisco implodes? Don't worry that owners will suddenly gain insight. There will be plenty of other disasters unless the CBA is truly transformational and rational. Of course, it will be neither.

I like pitching and defense, with a 3-2 game as the prototype. I envisioned those hard-hit balls falling in as the Marlins pulled off another late-inning comeback. The team will be rejuvenated tonight, mentally and physically, from the cold and soggy weekend in New York. Of course, Alcántara on the mound sure doesn't hurt!